City of the Dead
by Drag'lan 666
Summary: A group of survivors in a city where the dead roam must survive. Can they? Or will the seemingly endless numbers of undead overwhelm them and feast upon them, making the survivors into the mindless zombies that surround them?
1. Chapter 1

**Note to all Readers: I know that this isn't true to the Anime's timeline, but fanfictions are a person's perception. Also, I would like to point out that NONE of the characters from the anime will be making an appearance in this story. This is gonna revolve around a group of survivors created by me and a group of people from Deviantart: Kent Gratley (me, or The-Zerg-Overlord on Deviantart), Maiko Summers (Zelnodi), Lillianna "Lily" Steele (TheDarkBladeHuntress), and Matthew von Drache (Drakhand006). Sorry to those that don't agree with my ideas, but this is my story, not yours. You don't have to read it. If you're still willing to read, go ahead and do so.**

Chapter one - The beginning

_June 15, 2012_

_I've been hearing reports all over the radio about something big happening in the streets. While I doubt it's anything serious, I'll be keeping a closer eye on the house while my mom is out. God knows her boyfriend won't. I'm just glad my father taught me so well._

_June 16, 2012_

_I haven't seen mom since mid-day yesterday. Nothing to worry about there, as she normally works constant shifts to bring home money. Her boyfriend isn't here either. Went out to get something, he said. Yeah, right. That guy is the clearest dirt bag I've ever seen. What my mom sees in him, I'll never know, but if he keeps his shit up, there's gonna be fights going on in this house._

_June 17, 2012_

_WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE? I hear a loud commotion going on outside, and the moment I start walking towards the window, blood splatters on it. I ran upstairs and looked out the window, only to see someone EATING someone outside the window. Fortunately, it's that dirt bag my mother calls a boyfriend, but still, that person was chowing down. Jethro is out back, barking. I need to bring him in and keep him with me. Luckily, mom called, checking on me. Once I said something about the incident outside, she got all serious, telling me to lock the doors and barricade myself in the house._

_-Journal of Kent Gratley_

June 18, 2012, 6:32am

Kent Gratley sat in the living room. Jethro, the family's German Shepherd, was laying on the couch next to him, just looking at him. Kent was eating half a steak he had cooked, with the other half on a different part of the plate. Jethro's eyes bounced back and forth between Kent and the untouched piece of meat, an action that didn't go un-noticed by Kent.

"What's up, boy?" He asked quietly. "You want the other half of the steak?"

Jethro just whined briefly before resuming his bouncing glance. Kent chuckled.

"Oh, alright." He said jokingly. "Here."

With that, he tossed the untouched half of the steak into the kitchen, Jethro quickly following it. Kent then turned back to his meal, finishing a short time after. A few seconds later, he heard knocking at the door. Without thinking, Kent grabbed the knife hidden in between the couch cushions. He slowly approached the door, listening. The knocking sounded frantic.

"HELP!" A scared voice said. "HELP ME! THOSE THINGS ARE COMING!"

That voice set Jethro off, who started barking loudly.

"Quiet, Jethro." Kent said. Then he heard the moans of whatever was after the person outside. He quickly opened the door and let them in, shutting the door behind them and locking it.

The person was a man in his late 20s or early 30s, if Kent were to make a guess. He was hunched over, gasping for breathe.

"Thanks." The man said. "I don't know what would have happened had you not let me in."

"No problem." Kent said. "But before anything else happens, take off your jacket."

"What?" The man said.

"You heard me." Kent said. "Take off your jacket. I've seen what happens to those that have been bitten."

"I'm fine. Trust me." The man said. "I've been avoiding them for a long-"

Kent cut the man off when he pointed at him and said "Pin him, Jethro."

Jethro, with a loud bark, leaped at the man, tackling him and biting down on his arm.

"FUCK!" The man said. "Tell this dog to get off me!"

"You gonna listen to my demand then?" Kent said. "Because I have no problem with telling Jethro here to go for the kill."

"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT!" The man yelled. "I'll do it!"

"Good call." Kent said. "Jethro, release."

On that command, Jethro let go and got off of the man, but started growling. The man scrambled to get up and took off his jacket, revealing no wounds. Kent nodded.

"Okay." He said. "You're clean. Jethro, shake with him."

Jethro approached the man and raised a paw. The man looked at Kent with an eyebrow raised.

"It's how we have Jethro apologize." Kent said. "I'm sorry as well, but after seeing what I have, you probably understand my caution."

The man nodded and shook with Jethro. Then another pounding began on the front door, only this time, it was like two sets of hands slapping on the door. Moans accompanied the slaps.

"SHIT!" Kent said. "Looks like they zeroed in on the sounds we made."

As he approached the door to barricade it with the bookcase in the hallway, He heard the sound of breaking glass in the living room. As he dashed into the living room to see people fall through the broken glass. Without thinking, he flipped the knife he had in his hand onto its blade and threw it at one of them, hitting them directly in the eye by some sheer stroke of luck. The guy slumped over the windowsill, dead, but three others had fallen in, and all had started eating the man he had just saved. Jethro was in the kitchen, barking, but the people didn't seem to notice him. With a speed that could only be attributed to an adrenaline burst, Kent leaped over the pile and into the kitchen. He grabbed a pair of smooth knives, but felt a pair of hands grab his shoulders. His father's hand-to-hand training came into play, and he flipped the person holding him over his shoulder and onto the floor. Then, he raised a knife and plunged it directly into the middle of the creature's chest, but the thing started to get back up.

"What the FUCK?" Kent yelled. "That...that should've..."

Then another idea came to mind. He remembered how he had thrown the knife and it had flown into his first target's head. He then pulled the knife out and stabbed it into the temple of the creature in front of him. The person slumped back to the ground, dead, and Kent stood up.

When he turned around, Kent saw that there were more of whatever had broken the window shambling towards him. He bolted for the stairs to the second floor, dodging them as he went.

"COME ON, JETHRO!" He yelled when he hit the stairs, hearing the dog follow. The duo jolted up the stairs, with the people in hot pursuit. Without thinking, Kent pulled down a large bookcase on the landing and sent it tumbling down the stairs, bowling multiple people over as well as crushing a few. The few that weren't crushed by the bookcase were blocked by it.

"Fuck you, too, assholes." He said to the creatures. "I saw what you did to my mother's boyfriend and that guy downstairs. I ain't about to let you make me your own personal happy meal as well."

With that, he climbed onto the roof through a skylight, Jethro following him. He looked along the streets, seeing the carnage that was raging. Fires burned all over the place, people were dieing in droves, and while Kent saw a few grouping together to fight, they quickly got overwhelmed by the walking corpses. Most of those that were eaten got back up and started shambling around.

"God damn." Kent said quietly. "It looks like one of the horror flicks I used to watch religiously."

As he got closer to the skylight, Trent started barking. Kent turned around.

"What is it, boy?" He asked.

Trent looked at him, then resumed his barking. When Kent followed his closest friend's gaze, he saw a blur of movement, much too fast to be one of the dead. He couldn't get a good look at the figure, but knew that if someone else could survive out there, he could as well.

"Stay, Jethro." Kent said. "I gotta go back inside for some things, then we're leaving."

Jethro whimpered, clearly not wanting to stay on the roof alone.

Kent descended the ladder he had used to climb up onto the roof and walked into his room. He picked up his backpack, which would have normally been used for school supplies, but now that seemed useless. He overturned it, emptying the contents onto the floor. In the place of all the supplies, he put a pair of notebooks, a case of pencils, and some of the food supplies he had hidden in his closet. The rations he had stored away there were multiple cans of fruit, as well as soup and some beans. He also had saved up jars of dog food and meat, mostly for when they ran out of readily available food for Jethro, but it was the perfect size for traveling. He then grabbed his military-grade flashlight, a gift for his 15th birthday from his father, and put it into the backpack's holder. As he passed by the staircase for the third time, he saw a couple nearly over the bookcase.

"Shit." He said. "Looks like I have less time than I thought to get the hell out of here."

He quickened his pace to the skylight and climbed the ladder, scrambling onto the roof. He looked to his right and saw that the roof of the neighbor's house was easily jumpable by himself and Jethro.

"Okay, Jethro." He said. "Come on. Let's get to Mr. Harrel's place. We need to leave."

Jethro barked once, and leaped to the other roof. Kent shook his head before taking a running leap to the roof as well. He landed on the roof and looked for a door off of it. It didn't take long for him to find one. He kicked it in, as it was locked and started down the stairs. As he hit the ground floor, he heard the moans from the creatures in his house and looked around Mr. Harrel's house. The front door was bashed in, no doubt from the creatures outside. As he looked around, he remembered what his first kill looked like.

"Oh dear god." He said. "I killed Mr. Harrel."

He shook his head, but then heard moaning from the next room, the kitchen. Out of it, shambling, came a figure. It was a woman, but her neck had a huge chunk ripped out of it. Kent then realized he recognized the figure.

"Oh my god." He said. "Mrs. Kasigawa. What's wrong with you?"

Only Mrs. Kasigawa didn't respond, but started to lunge at him. She never achieved grabbing him, as Trent rammed into her. Jethro sent her sprawling, snarling and barking. However, Mrs. Kasigawa didn't seem to notice him, just like the ones in his house. She started getting up, moaning as she did.

"God forgive me for what I'm about to do." Kent said quietly, pulling out one of his knives. He then flipped it onto its blade and threw it at her, catching her right in the cheek. She didn't register the wound and continued to get up. Kent's eyes widened as he saw this. He pulled out the other knife and walked up to her before stabbing it into her eye. She fell back, dead at last. Kent stood up and turned away, shaking.

"What the hell is happening here?" He asked nobody in particular, his voice shaking. "This shit isn't normal."

He then heard Jethro whimper and turned around. He saw a group of the creatures walking in through the front door. He turned back around and ran out the back door, followed closely by Jethro.

"Oh shit, oh shit." He said. "Gotta get to higher ground. COME ON, JETHRO!"

With that he kept running down the alley and into the next street. Then he realized that he had left the knives back in Mr. Harrel's home.

"Oh fuck me." He said. "Well, too late now."

Then he heard a piercing scream a block to his right. Without thinking, he walked towards the sound, but saw nothing when he arrived. What he did see was a long streak of blood as well as blood footprints leading away from a large pool of blood. Inside the blood pool was a fire axe. Kent shuddered.

"Well." He said after recovering. "I need some form of weapon. And it doesn't look like whoever dropped it is coming back."

With that, he slowly approached the axe and reached out the grab the handle when the foot of something landed on the handle. He looked up into blank eyes, and he froze. Much to his surprise, the thing just took another step forward and kept moving, ignoring him. Once it had moved a safe distance, or what Kent registered as a safe distance, he grabbed the fire axe. Once his fingers closed around the wooden handle of the weapon, he know what had to be done. While the blood made the handle slick, his grip only tightened around it. He turned to Jethro, a strong glint of determination in his eyes.

"Come on, boy." He said, taking a step down the road. "Let's go find other survivors."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - The Search

June 18, 2012, 2:56pm

Kent and Jethro were walking towards the school. Kent had been suspended for fighting the week before. However, he had to know if the friends he had at school, what few there were, survived. With any luck, they had. They, along with Kent, were rather tough guys to mess with, even if they left each other to their own fights. However, the group made it clear that if someone messed with one member of the group, they'd have to deal with the group in its entirety.

They were within a couple blocks of the school, most of the time spent traveling being done to avoid the zombies in the streets. That was the only thing they could be. He remembered one that he had to kill. It was one of his old friends from the past. She had had chunks bitten out of her legs, arms and neck. He had swung the axe in his hands at another that had attacked him, and the noise of the follow-through had attracted her attention. When he looked at her, his eyes widened, as she had been a girl that he had fancied once upon a time, until her bitchy attitude came out. He had deftly swung the axe at her neck, decapitating her as she approached him.

His reminiscing of the past was brought to a close by the roar of a vehicle approaching, and rapidly by the sounds of it. Then, a zombie came into view in front of Kent. Jethro immediately started barking. For some reason, while the zombies hadn't taken notice of Trent before, this one did. It started lurching towards the dog.

"Oh no you don't, you son of a bitch!" Kent yelled, running at the zombie, raising the axe as he did. "You're not taking the one friend I have right now from me!"

The zombie quickly changed targets, Kent's words seemingly more attractive than the dog's barking. It lurched at him, managing to grab onto his shoulders. As it was bringing its head down to bite into his neck, Jethro tackled it, snarling. As the Zombie was sent tumbling back, a bus slammed into it, running the damn thing over. It came to a stop after this, and the doors opened, revealing a blonde Caucasian driving. The bus was empty aside from the one student, who was wearing a standard school uniform, something that Kent despised having to wear.

"You need a lift?" The person asked, even though they clearly knew the answer.

"Damn right, I do." Kent said. "You come from the school?"

"Yep." The person said. "But I'd get on, if I were you. No telling when more of those…_things_ will come by."

"Good point." Kent said. "Jethro, get on."

Jethro whimpered, as the dog didn't like being in vehicles.

"Jethro." Kent said. "You'll be fine. I promise"

Jethro looked at him with sad eyes before getting onto the bus, Kent quickly following him.

"Sorry about Jethro, here." Kent said, gesturing to the German Shepherd, who had settled down on a row of the seats. "When he was about 4 years old, he was hit by someone in a car. He somehow survived, but hates vehicles now."

"Interesting." The person in the driver's seat said, starting the buss again and gunning it. "But what do you know about this entire catastrophe?"

"Probably about the same amount as you." Kent said. "All I know is that these things, as you put it, are zombies."

"How do you figure that?" The person asked.

"I saw my mother's boyfriend get eaten by one of then he stood up and started walking around." Kent said. "I also stabbed one of them squarely in the chest, and they still tried to get up."

"So, you have some experience with them?" The person asked.

"I've killed about six so far. Three of them I knew." Kent said. "You have to let it all go, or you'll get eaten by them as well."

"That sounds easier said than done." The person said.

"It is." Kent said. "Anyway, what's your name?"

"Maiko Summers." The person said. "And yours?"

"Kent Gratley." Kent said.

"I remember that name." Maiko said. "A week ago, you started that fight that ended with another student, I forget the name of them, going to the hospital."

"I warned him that if he started shit with me, he better have the balls to finish it." Kent said. "Besides, the guy threw the first punch and got me a few times to show for what I did."

"Still, I don't think he deserved that." Maiko said.

"Dude, have you ever driven in your life?" Kent asked, just now watching as the bus was swerving over the road.

"Nope." Maiko said. "But now seems like a good time to try."

"Pull over, then, and let me take the wheel." Kent said. "I've driven to and from school in my mom's personal car before, when she took the city bus."

"I don't think that's gonna be necessary." Maiko said. "We got a bad roadblock ahead of us."

"What do you mean?" Kent asked.

"Bunch of wrecked cars." Maiko said. "And I doubt this thing can ram its way through them."

"On that note, where are we headed?" Kent asked.

"My family's home." Maiko said, keeping his eyes on the road. "It has weapons that belong to my father."

"Fair enough." Kent said. "But did anybody else survive to get out of the school?"

"I don't know." Maiko said. "I'm sure a few did, but there's no way to truly tell. I know I saw some of your crew die, though."

"Alright." Kent said. "Let's get going to your house. With any luck there will be more supplies there. We may also find more survivors, too."

"Right you are." Maiko said. "But back to the task at hand: How are we gonna get around this roadblock?"

"Let me take a look." Kent said. "I might be able to find a way to move them."

"I doubt there's any way of that happening, but be my guest." Maiko said, opening the doors.

"Come, Jethro." Kent said to his dog, who quickly got up and followed him off the bus.

The moment his feet hit the pavement, Kent was reaching for the fireaxe, pulling it out of the makeshift sling he had created. He moved to make room for Trent to get off the bus. He then looked at the roadblock. Maiko was right; the roadblock was bad, as the cars were rather messed up.

Then Kent heard voices just past the cars, as there was a small path that lead through the cars. He cautiously made his way through the path, noting how confined it was, Trent following right beside him. When he made it through the path, He saw something bad: a group of 4 different people, all wielding weapons, standing over a body that wasn't moving. Then one kneeled next to the body and started rummaging through the pockets.

"Nice job, people." The one kneeling next to the body said. "I wonder what this catch has on her."

"That was fun." Another one said. "I loved hearing her try to scream through the cloth."

Kent's eyes widened; They had just raped and killed that girl!

Jethro then started growling at the people, catching their attention. They all looked in his direction.

"Well, well, what have we here?" The one kneeling next to the body said. "Some young jerk-off who thinks he's all that because he's on his own with his dog."

"Look who's talking about young." Kent said, his grip tightening on the fireaxe. "Hard for you to say anything about me being young when you don't look a day past five."

The guy he spoke to laughed.

"I like you kid." The guy said. "Too bad our group is filled, because you would've fit right in.":

"No, I wouldn't have." Kent said, his grip tightening still. "I wouldn't have killed that girl, much less raped her."

"Just a bit of fun." The guy said, standing up. "But now we gotta kill you."

As a group, they started advancing on Kent, who raised the axe, prepared to fight them to the death if necessary.

~

Back in the bus, Maiko sat in the driver's seat impatiently. What was Kent doing in that roadblock?

"Seriously." He said to himself. "How long does it take to find out that this thing can't be moved out of the way?

Then his mind went to some possibilities after a bit.

_Maybe, just maybe, the zombies got him._ Maiko thought. _No, that can't have happened, from what Kent had said about himself._

"You know what? Fuck it." Maiko said. "I'm gonna go check this shit out as well."

With that, he stood up and walked off the bus, and made his way through the roadblock.

~

Kent saw them scatter a bit, which didn't surprise him; They hoped to fall upon him like a group of piranhas did on a piece of meat. Then he noticed that one was holding back a bit. After a bit of inspection, he saw why; They were holding a pistol, a Glock 17 if he wasn't mistaken.

The moment they raised it, however, Jethro became a blur, tackling them with a snarl and biting deeply into their throat. As the blood sprayed into the air, the others turned to see this and started to move towards Jethro, but Kent sprung into action, swinging the fireaxe and embedding it into the chest of one, kicking another in the side, dropping him from a lucky kidney shot, and tackling the fourth.

~

Maiko was making his way through the roadblock when he heard the sound of a dog snarling, a wet _thunk_, and the sound of four bodies hitting the floor. He quickened his pace.

The elements of the scene before him were pretty cut-and-dry: He saw Jethro on top of a man, tearing his throat out, another on the ground with a fireaxe sticking out of his chest,one down clutching his side, and Kent on top of another.

The one clutching his side started to get up, pulling out a knife, but Maiko wasn't going to have that. With a yell, he ran up to the man and tackled him.

~

Kent didn't know what made his not stop hitting the man, but knew the reason why he did; The man had raped and killed someone's daughter, someone's baby. The man had, at this point, stopped moving of his own accord, the only reason for his moving being Kent's punches. That's when he stopped.

He stood up, and saw Jethro still on the man he had tackled, as well as Maiko, who had tackled the man he had dropped through a kick. Maiko was still pummeling the man, so he looked at Jethro.

"Jethro, down." He said. When Trent didn't stop, Kent walked up to him. He ran his hands through Jethro's fur. "Jethro, it's alright. Down."

Jethro then stopped, getting off of the body, still snarling slightly. Satisfied, Kent walked over to Maiko.

"Man, it's over." Kent said. "Lay off."

Maiko then stood up, panting.

"He pulled a knife." He said. "What else could I have done?"

"Not much." Kent said. "But I know just the end for them."

"Really?" Maiko asked. "And what would that be?"

"The zombies seem to be attracted to noise." Kent said, walking over to the man with the fireaxe sticking out of his chest and removing it.

"So?" Maiko asked. Then it dawned on him as Kent walked over to the cars. "Wait. You're gonna attract a horde, aren't you?"

"Damn right." Kent said. "These sacks of shit deserve to be eaten after what they did."

Before Maiko could do anything, Kent raised the flat side of the axe and brought it down on the hood of one of the cars, making a nearly deafening _crash_. Almost immediately after he did that, Kent heard faint moans from the undead.

"Come on." He said to Maiko and Trent. "We need to clear out before _they_ get here."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Gaining Allies.

June18, 2012, 4:03pm

Kent looked over his shoulder and saw Maiko reaching down to pick up something from the man Trent had mauled.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Getting a weapon." Maiko said. "I also need to see if there are any spare magazines on him."

"Well, do it quickly." Kent said. "I don't know how fast the undead are gonna get here."

Maiko nodded as he continued his search.

Kent then heard groans from the man, Maiko and he had beaten. They showed signs of stirring.

"Shit." He said. "Maiko, you done yet?"

"Just about." Maiko said. "Why?"

"Because our thugs here are coming to." Kent said. "So I would really appreciate it if you-"

"Finished." Maiko said. "Let's go."

They left immediately after Maiko said that. On their way down the alley, they heard the screams from the pair of men. The sounds quickly came to an end in mid-scream.

"I would say I feel sorry for them." Kent said. "But then I'd be lying."

"You're one sick son of a bitch." Maiko said.

"Trust me, if you knew what they had done, You wouldn't be so liberal." Kent said.

"Why?" Maiko asked. "What did they do?"

"Let's just say that someone just lost their baby girl." Kent said, his voice somewhat sorrowful. "Those four raped and killed someone's daughter."

"Dear god." Maiko said. "That does put things into perspective."

"But anyway, how much further until we get to your house?" Kent asked.

"Not much farther." Maiko said. "I just hope my father's still alive. You got any family?"

"My mother and father." Kent said. "Father left two years ago for military reasons. I don't know where he is, but my mother is part of the police. I hope she's okay."

Jethro barked.

"Oh yeah. I forgot about Jethro." Kent said. "We got him when I was twelve, and he's been a close friend of mine ever since."

"Nice." Maiko said. "I wish my family believed in pets."

"That sucks." Kent said. "But what's the plan after-"

Just then, Jethro started barking at something.

"What is it, boy?" Kent asked him.

Jethro just looked at Kent before facing the direction he barked before. He barked again. Kent followed Jethro's eyes and saw a small warehouse. Jethro was just staring at the door, which was wide open.

Kent turned to Maiko, his eyes showing confusion and concern.

"Something's not right." Kent said to Maiko. "Nothing has set Jethro off like this to this day."

"Well, we're in a frickin' ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE." Maiko said. "This is far from normal."

"Agreed, but still." Kent said. "You saw how calm Jethro was, even when he was near the zombies."

"So?" Maiko said. "There doesn't seem to be any connection."

"If you didn't know him like I do, there wouldn't seem to be one." Kent said. "But I'm telling you, something's not right here."

"Okay, then." Maiko said. "What do you suggest we do then?"

"I suggest we check out the building Jethro is barking at." Kent said. "He never barks without a good reason."

"I don't think that's a good idea." Maiko said. "Not under the circumstances. I only found one extra magazine on the guy." Maiko said before ejecting the magazine in the G17. "And the mag in the gun has about 10 rounds in it at the most."

"Don't forget the one in the chamber." Kent said. "So we got about 26 rounds total."

"Still." Maiko said. "I don't think this is a good idea."

"We may find you a decent melee weapon in the warehouse." Kent said. "Also, that could've been the group of thugs' hideout, meaning there could be more ammunition there."

"Yeah, but is it worth the risk?" Maiko asked.

"We can't afford to let this opportunity pass us by." Kent said. "Besides, if we can't get to your house this way, we'll need supplies. It'll be dark soon, and the food I packed will only keep Jethro and I fed for another three days. With you added in, the food for people would only last maybe a day at the most."

"Alright." Maiko said. "But I'm staying back."

"Got it." Kent said. "And don't use the gun. Since these things are attracted to loud noise, a gunshot will be like setting a sign that says 'Food Here' to the zombies."

"I figured that already, thank you very much." Maiko said. "But let's get this over with."

Kent nodded and started walking into the warehouse. Jethro followed him closely. As he walked in, he noticed that the place was rather empty, but there were enough crates to hold adequate amounts of supplies. Then Jethro began scratching at one of the crates, whimpering.

"What's wrong, boy?" Kent asked as he approached the crate.

Only then did he hear the moans coming from the other end of the warehouse. In an instant, his fireaxe was in his hands.

"See?" Maiko asked quietly. "This is what I was talking about."

"Honestly, there was no telling that there would be any zombies in here." Kent said. "But if I'm right, there was only three. They'll be easy to take out."

"Yeah, but what if there are more than that?" Maiko asked. "What then?"

"Then you'll have to use that gun." Kent said. "You ever hold a gun like that before?"

"Yep." Maiko said. "My father taught me how to fire and clean a couple guns, this type being one of them."

"Good." Kent said. "Didn't want to have to train you; My father trained me a bit in the use of firearms as well. Well, he focused on handguns, but I also got some training in assault rifles. He wanted me to be a step ahead of the others if I decided to go military like him."

"Anyway." Maiko said, turning back towards the sounds of the moaning. "We need to get the heck out of here before-"

The sounds of moaning behind them cut him off, causing them to both turn around. Kent's eyes narrowed at what he saw: Zombies beginning to shamble into the warehouse. He raised the fireaxe, preparing to swing it as Maiko raised the pistol with clear experience.

"Alright." He said. "Let's see what we can do to dodge them. Hold off on firing that gun for the moment."

Maiko nodded, and they began to slowly back-peddle. Then Kent noticed something off about one of the larger containers. As they passed it, he heard the moans from inside. Once the undead were free, the situation would get a lot more interesting, as well as dangerous.

"GET AWAY FROM THAT CONTAINER!" He yelled to Maiko, just as the door of the container started to swing open. Jethro was right at Kent's side, so he would be safe.

Out of the container shambled about five other undead, bringing the total to around eight. Kent's grip on his axe tightened. He took another step back, and he felt a wall.

"Shit." He said. "Looks like we gotta fight our way out."

"On it." Maiko said, taking careful aim at the closest zombie. Then his hands started shaking. His first shot went wide, hitting a container and ricocheting into another zombie's neck.

The second shot didn't fare much better, embedding itself into his target's chest. The third finally did it, slamming directly into the zombies forehead. After it dropped, it tripped a couple of the zombies, making them easy targets for Kent's axe, who took the opportunity. The spike end of the axe fell twice, and two more of the zombies stopped moving.

The next zombie lurched at Kent, who barely got the axe up in time. Its neck slammed into the handle as it kept trying to bite at him. They fell back, Kent lying on the ground as the zombie tried to chomp down on him. His strength was holding out, but he doubted it would last, as the zombie was beginning to ever so slowly inch forward. The pistol rang out three more times, and he heard two bodies hit the floor.

"Jethro." He said, looking the zombie he was holding back. "Tackle."

Jethro quickly obeyed, sending the zombie sprawling, giving Kent just enough time to stand back up. He saw three other zombies, not including the one Jethro had tackled. Then there was a sound like the air being sliced. Before he knew it, one was decapitated. As the head parted with the body, which had started to fall, he saw a figure behind them, wielding a sword like they were an expert. He looked at them and saw that they were a female, and a familiar one at that.

"You just gonna stand there staring?" Maiko said, taking aim at the next zombie. "Let's finish these others off before we start drooling."

"Fuck you." Kent said, swinging his axe at the zombie Jethro had tackled. The blade impacted the back of its skull, becoming stuck.

"Shit." He said, letting go of the axe and turning around just as another zombie, the last one, lurched at him. He easily flipped it over him, causing it to land on it's stomach. As it began to get back up, He grabbed the back of it's head and drove it into the floor with enough force to cause a sickening _crunch_ upon impact. Then he snapped the damn thing's neck.

"Holy shit." Maiko said as Kent stood up. "Not too bad."

"That's nothing." Kent said, retrieving his fireaxe before turning to the newcomer. "Thanks for the help."

She nodded.

"I think I remember you, though." Kent said. "Did you go to the school about fifteen blocks down the road?"

Again, she nodded.

"Ahh yes." Kent said, nodding. "You were the one that entered early second semester."

Again with the nodding.

"Why are you being so quiet?" Kent asked. "We need to band together to survive."

"Because I don't trust you." She said. "The last time I trusted a man, I was nearly raped."

"Oh, damn." Kent said. "But you don't have to worry about that. It's not my style to harm a lady, unless they hurt me first. And even then, it's only when they hit me."

"That's not my style either." Maiko said. "But Kent's right. We need to band together if we're to survive."

"So, what's your name?" Kent asked. "I'm Kent Gratley, as Maiko Summers here said. And the dog is my pet Jethro."

"I'm Lillianna Steele," The female said. "Call me Lily, though. Everyone does."

"Alright, Lily." Kent said. "But let's get out of here. We set off a flare when we shot the gun."

"I know." Lily said. "That's how I knew you were in here."

The group then left the warehouse. Down the street, the undead were starting to congregate. Kent looked around and saw a door gaping open. It was the entrance to an apartment building. The sky was also becoming dark. These weren't good circumstances.

"Shit." He said quietly. "Murphy's Law is hitting full force today."

"What do you mean?" Maiko asked.

"We have two main options right now." Kent whispered. "Either we go into that apartment building and find an apartment that is abandoned and risk being attacked in VERY close quarters, or we take our chances with the hoards in the street."

"Best bet would be the apartment, since there's a slight chance of there being no zombies." Maiko whispered.

"I disagree." Lily whispered. "These things are attracted to sound. If we move quietly, we might be able to skirt around the horde."

"So I'm the tie-breaker. Shit." Kent said, shaking his head. "Well, I see your point, Lily, in how if we're quiet we can avoid the zombies, but the moment my fireaxe hits something, the façade is over. So I gotta say we try the apartment, but we enter quietly."

"Okay," Lily said with a shrug. "If we're lucky, there's only a couple zombies in the building."

Kent nodded.

"Agreed." He said. "But let's get moving. Daylight's getting faint."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4- Death in the Family

June 28, 2012, 7:48pm

"Right. Those things must come out at night far more often than the amount given earlier." Maiko theorized as they made their way to the apartment door.

"Besides, we need shelter. I don't think you guys can see in the dark any better than I can." Kent said.

"True, true." Maiko said. "But let's get moving in."

The apartment building stood a lean three stories high and were connected to many other buildings on its right. Maiko took point into the building, holding his G17 tight in both hands. He turned to his left to see a broken down elevator shaft that wasn't an option to travel through.

"We're taking the stairs." Maiko whispered.

"Gotcha." Kent replied.

Kent took point as they started climbing the stairs, holding his Axe at the ready and with Jethro right by his side, followed by Lily, and finally Maiko walking up the stairs backwards ready in the case of an attack from behind. Kent spotted a zombie as they made it to the second floor and dispatched it with a swift swing at its head, cutting the top half of it off. Afterwards, the group headed up the second set of stairs to the top floor and entered the room on their left. The room was dark and had been completely raided.

"I'll check the next room." Maiko announced before walking across the short hall into the second room.

Maiko creaked the door open with his right hand and aimed with his left, as he's left handed, and checked the kitchen for food. Rummaging through the cabinets, Maiko retrieved some loafs of bread that hadn't gone bad and some peanut jars. He looked through the refrigerator immediately afterwards and found two twelve packs of Dr. Pepper and half a twelve pack of Mountain Dew. Maiko returned to the other room with the supplies in both arms.

Kent watched as Maiko came back into the room. He nodded his head approvingly at seeing what had been found.

"Well, it looks like we'll be having some Peanut Butter sandwiches and some coke for awhile." Maiko joked as he laid down the supplies on the kitchen counter. "You two find anything?"

"Nope. Not even a cracker." Lily replied.

"Yeah. I think this room got looted early-on." Kent said as he loaded the new supplies into a duffel bag he found in the bed room. "Well, at least we have what we have."

"Right. I also have an idea for how to progress from here." Maiko said as he helped load up the rest of the supplies. "There is one more set of stairs that should lead up to the rooftop. If we travel from rooftop to rooftop, then we could easily avoid many unwanted conflicts. My house isn't far from here anyways."

"Sounds like a plan." Lily mumbled, deep in thought about the situation.

Minutes passed before they left the room and headed up the final stairs which lead to a door, going outside. Kent took point as he opened the door flooding their eyes with darkness from outside. The group began to "free run" across the roofs which were about four feet apart, short enough for Jethro to leap across as well.

"There's my house up ahead." Maiko gasped before slowing down. "Let's stop here and run through the alleys. My roof doesn't have a way to get in the house from."

"Okay, but try to refrain from firing the Glock unless it's the only option open. I don't think we need anymore company." Kent advised.

Maiko nodded at this and pointed out the fire escape on the side of the building they were on. The trio climbed down and lowered the ladder to the alley below.

"I'll go first. I'll have to carry Jethro anyways." Kent whispered, with a hint og nervousness in his voice. "Come on, Jethro."

Jethro whimpered as Kent picked him up and slowly descended down the ladder with Jethro in his right arm and descending a step at a time with his left.

"It's alright, boy. Here you go." Kent said quietly as he set his companion down and scratched him behind the ears when they got down. "We're okay."

Lily climbed down next followed by Maiko who grabbed the sides of the ladder and quickly slid down. Maiko ran out of the alleyway, excited to find his house, and were followed closely by Kent and Lily.

When Maiko arrived at his house he quickly opened the door and rushed into the kitchen. Kent and Lily hadn't yet caught up as Maiko had ran too fast, being excited about his father.

"Dad...Dad?" Maiko inquired turning from left to right. "Are you here?" A short pause of silence rang out. "Please tell me your in the basement, and alive.." Maiko mumbled to himself before checking the basement.

Kent and Lily had arrived at the house seconds after Maiko checked the basement.

"Maiko!" Kent said loudly. "Where are you, man?"

"I'm here." Maiko said as he came out of the kitchen.

"You have any luck finding him?" Kent asked.

"Not yet. He wasn't in the basement or the kitchen...I'll check upstairs." Maiko mumbled, worried.

"Alright. We'll stay down here." Kent said as he placed his hand on his shoulder. "Best of luck."

"Thank you." Maiko slightly smiled.

Shortly afterwards, Maiko headed up the stairs with doubt in his mind. He opened up his room and saw that nothing had been trashed. He closed the door, took a deep breath and opened his father's door next to his.

Kent and Lily had been sitting on the couch, discussing what to do with the food they had when they heard a loud yell that sounded like, "No", from upstairs. Kent was the first to react, and rushed upstairs only to spot Maiko on his knees crying.

"Whats wro-" Kent began to say before he spotted Maiko's father's body on the ground. "Oh God..." He mumbled.

"Those...rotting..bastards!" Maiko yelled as he clenched his fists uncontrollably.

"Maiko..." Kent whispered before taking a step closer.

"STAND BACK!" Maiko yelled as he turned around with tears in his eyes.

Kent did as he was told as he couldn't imagine the pain Maiko was currently going through.

"I am..so..so sorry for what happened, Maiko.." Kent admitted.

"Just...give me a minute to myself..please.." Maiko whimpered.

"Take all the time you need." Kent comforted him as he left the room and walked down the stairs.

"What happened?" Lily asked, partly knowing the answer.

"I think you know." Kent mumbled as he sat on the couch. "There's only one possible explanation for this."

Maiko let the tears fall from his face to the floor as he noticed the self inflicted gunshot wound to his father's chest. In his right hand was the gun and in his left was a picture of Maiko as a child with himself and Maiko's mother. Maiko removed the pictured and put it in his wallet.

"Thank you for being there when I needed you father..." Maiko sobbed before noticing the swords on his father's desk.

Maiko got up and took the two largest swords and strapped them to his chest. He carried the smallest sword in his hand.

Kent and Lily waited patiently on the couch before hearing footsteps near them. Maiko came down the staircase with the swords on his back, the short sword in hand, and part of his school uniform torn and wrapped around his head as a bandanna. As Kent looked at his face, the form was nearly unreadable, but Maiko's eyes had a fire in them. One that made Kent fear for his new friend's life and sanity.

"Let's go." Maiko said sternly, as he opened the door without turning to see Kent or Lily.

"Maiko-" Lily began to say.

"Don't." Kent said, cutting her off as he shook his head and got up. "Let me handle this. I've had experience with this type of person before."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - Ghosts of the Past

June 28, 2012, 11:01pm

Kent caught up to Maiko quickly. He put his hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"Maiko." Kent said. "I can't even begin to imagine what you're going through. However, if you keep going, you'll just end up dead."

"What does it matter anymore?" Maiko asked, his voice cold and emotionless. "I just lost the only family I had left."

"You still have Lily, Jethro and me." Kent said, worried for Maiko's sanity. "We're all in the same boat at this point. I'm willing to bet that my mother is dead by this point, or worse. At least your father ended his life before he could risk harming you when you returned home."

"It's not the same." Maiko said, his voice starting to tremble with sadness.

"No, no it's not." Kent said. "But we're here for you. Don't forget that. Just come back inside. I don't think your father would want you going out there just to die."

"You're right." Maiko said. "Let's spend the night here, then leave."

Kent nodded. As he walked back into the house, he saw Lily sitting next to Jethro, scratching his ears. Jethro was just laying on the ground, his head in Lily's lap, enjoying the attention. That sight made his heart start beating slightly faster. Just the thought of Jethro liking her made his feelings towards her grow. Now that he thought about it, he had seen her during the school year, namely during lunch, and while his group would leave the lunch room almost immediately after they finished eating, he would linger for a few minutes, watching the new girl across the lunch room. The moment she looked up and at him, however, he'd quickly stand up and leave.

He hadn't been able work the nerve up to ask her out, but he knew that there was something about her that he liked, aside from her looks, as she was rather pretty. It was more in the way she carried herself. It seemed like she was pretty in both body and soul, because she wasn't arrogant or stuck up, at least not that he noticed. In a way, he pitied her, because she was followed by multiple guys, rarely getting a moment to herself. He was glad his "crew", as they were called, hadn't caught on about his feelings, as he would've been hounded by them over the fact that he fancied a girl, but wouldn't ask her out.

When he sat down on the other side of Jethro, she looked up. She saw Maiko walk in as well.

"I see you managed to talk Maiko out of leaving." She said.

Kent nodded.

"At least for the night." He said. "Let's get some rest, though. We'll need it if we're going to make it much farther."

"Agreed." Lily said. "Only question is where everyone will sleep."

"I'll be fine with the floor." Kent said as he walked over to a wall and sat down leaning against it. He deliberately chose a spot far from a window or door. "You can take the couch."

"What about Maiko?" Lily said.

"I'll be fine with the floor as well." Maiko said.

That's when Kent fell asleep. And one of his dreams that night was very disturbing.

_He was running through the streets, the zombies right behind him. He was just barely keeping ahead of them. His axe had fallen out of its sling a long way back, so he was weaponless._

As he kept running, he saw them start coming out of the side-roads. Then, just when he thought they had stopped coming out of nowhere, one stepped into his path. Only after he tackled it out of his way did he recognize the face: Maiko. He kept running, just to get tackled by another, this one Lily. The scene faded to black…

Next, he was a zombie himself, shambling towards the pair, even as they tried to kill him. He grabbed a hold of Lily and dragged her towards him. Then he sank his teeth into her neck.

No. No.

"NO!" Kent all but yelled, his eyes springing open, sitting up within seconds.

Kent noticed that his face was covered in sweat and he was shaking. He looked down to see Jethro laying by him on his side, slightly snoring. He leaned back on the wall, breathing deeply.

"Okay." He said quietly to himself. "It was just a dream. Nothing more."

He heard footsteps. Normal ones. When he looked up, he saw Lily walking towards him.

"Good morning." She said. "Have a bad dream?"

"Yes." Kent said. "Nothing good about it."

"Tell me-"

A pair of hands grabbed a hold of Lily from the shadows, dragging her away, her screams trailing off.

~

June 29, 2012 5:23am

~

Kent sprang forward, his eyes wide open in fear. He looked around, seeing everything beginning to brighten. It was barely past dawn. He looked down to see Jethro laying on his side, his back towards Kent. He leaned back against the wall, hyperventilating.

_That dream…_ He thought. _That dream brought a whole different kind of hell to bear on me._

He looked around again, and saw Lily on the couch, sound asleep, her right arm hanging off the couch, nearly touching the floor. Her breathing was regular for someone who was asleep.

As he got up, Jethro groaned in his dog way, then shook himself a bit before standing up and stretching. Then he grabbed his backpack.

"Stay, boy." Kent said quietly. "I don't want you waking the other two up. I'm going into the kitchen to search for some provisions."

Jethro whimpered, but walked over to the couch and laid down on the ground, near Lily. Again, Kent's heart jumped a bit. However, his focus remained on his objective: Search the kitchen for any and all supplies they could acquire.

He quickly, but quietly, made his way into the kitchen and immediately went to the cupboards. As he opened one, he saw multiple boxes of cereal. Next to them, a couple of bread loafs lay nestled. He pulled a few boxes down as well as a couple loafs of bread. As he looked over the boxes, he put the ones that were the healthiest down on the counter. The sugar-filled ones he put back into the cupboard. The three boxes he decided to keep, he put into his backpack. The loafs he had pulled down would go into the duffel. The other cupboards yielded little in the way of supplies. When he walked to the refrigerator, however, he saw something that made him very happy: There was an entire case of bottles of water on the bottom shelf.

"What are you doing?" A voice said behind Kent, making him jump.

When he turned around, he saw Lily standing there, almost sleepily. He exhaled before speaking.

"I'm gathering whatever supplies I can before we leave." He said. "I wanted to do it while you two were sleeping, but now it's just Maiko that's out."

"Mind if I help?" Lily asked.

"Not at all." Kent said. "Though I think I'm nearly done. There's not a whole lot of stuff left."

"What all have you gotten?" Lily asked.

"Three boxes of cereal, a couple loafs of bread, and a half case of water." Kent said, turning back towards the fridge. "Well, well, well. What have we here?"

Kent moved a gallon of milk and saw a twelve-pack of Mountain Dews. Beside the case was a group of about three bottles of barbecue sauce.

"Bingo." Kent said, pulling the case of Mountain Dews out. "Could you please go get the duffel bag? I need to store the sodas."

Lily nodded before leaving. Just as she did, Kent's left-hand pocket of his hoodie vibrated. When he pulled out what was in the pocket, he saw his cell phone.

"I forgot I put that there." He said to himself quietly before looking to see who had messaged him.

Where the number should've been, a "sender blocked" resided.

"What the?" He asked nobody, opening the phone to view the message.. "Who could possibly know my…"

His voice trailed off when he started reading the message.

_Kent, I know I haven't seen you in a long time, but I must tell you this. I don't know what your mother has told you about my departure, but I do know she gave you my old dog tags; She messaged me telling me she had. By this time, you're probably already on the run from the undead. I know I taught you well enough for you to survive. I'm on my way back to you, but it will take some time. Everything is in chaos right now, but you need to get yourself armed. Go back home and go into the basement. There, look for the safe built into the wall. It will be about 7 feet tall and a foot and a half wide, if not a bit bigger. The combination is 26-59-6-32, L-R-R-L. Inside will be a couple gifts I had planned on giving you when you came of age, but the military called me out before I could give them to you. They'll help you survive, as well as those that travel with you. Yes, I know you'll band with other survivors. It's in your nature. Just keep Jethro safe, as well as yourself._

Kent fell back against the wall with a slight and fell to the floor with a barely audible _thump_.

"I can't believe it…" He said. "I just can't believe it."

"Can't believe what?" Lily asked as she came in, carrying.

"I just got a message from someone I haven't heard from in a couple years." Kent said.

"Oh?" Lily asked, walking towards the fridge and putting the sodas into the duffel bag. "And who would that be?"

"My father." Kent said, holding his phone out. "Here. Look at the message he sent."

Lily took the phone and quickly read the message.

"How do you know it was your father that sent you the message?" Lily asked, handing the phone back to Kent. "How do you know it's not just someone that's masquerading as your father?"

"Because he said that my mother gave me a pair of his old dog tags. _These_ dog tags." Kent said, pulling the chain holding his dog tags out. "Only two people would know that my mother gave these to me: Me, and my mother, unless she told someone else."

"Okay, okay." Lily said. "But how are we going to get to your home?"

"We?' Kent said. "I'm not asking you to come with me."

"I know. I'm telling you that I'm coming with you." Lily said. "We need to stick together if we're going to survive."

"Alright." Kent said, partly glad that he wasn't going alone, partly glad that it was Lily telling him that at least she was coming with him; Something about her just made him happy to have him around. Maybe it was just the fact that it made him feel like what he was doing was worthwhile, protecting a female. Hell if he knew, but he didn't care. "But let's get Maiko up and moving."

"No need." Maiko said from the doorway. "I heard the entire conversation."

"Okay." Kent said. "And you don't disagree with this at all?"

Maiko shook his head.

"Nope." He said. "I just wanna leave this place."

"I understand." Kent said, standing up with Lily's help. "And my search for supplies is done. There's nothing left that I'd suggest taking."

Maiko just turned and started walking towards the front door.

"Let's go." Kent said, putting his backpack on. "Come on, Jethro."

As he walked towards the front door, Kent reached for his axe, grabbing it and slipping it into the sling as he went. He then put his backpack on, as Lily was carrying the duffel at the moment. Jethro was following the pair as they walked out into the street.

~

Kent's house, 2:14pm

~

Kent looked at his home. It was in almost the same state he had left it, but the stench of the zombies was overwhelming. The ones he had killed were still there, rotting. He had to cover his face with his sleeve at the stench.

"Damn." He said. "I didn't realize how much they'd stink."

"Agreed." Maiko said. "But let's just get what we came here for and get going again."

Kent nodded and made his way to the front door. It was locked, naturally, but Kent was in too much of a hurry to go to another entrance, so he just kicked the door in. The _crash_ resounded through the neighborhood.

"Really subtle." Maiko said. "You ever think that we'll probly be trapped if they start coming?'

"We won't get trapped." Kent said. "There's still the back door, the roof, and a trapdoor leading up from the basement."

"Okay. But my previous statement still stands." Maiko said. "Let's just get what we came for and get moving again."

Kent nodded. The trio then walked into the made his way into the basement and saw the safe his father had mentioned. As he approached it, he heard Maiko whistle.

"Nice choice in a safe." Maiko said. "Your father spared no expense when it came to protecting whatever is in that thing."

"Yep." Kent said. "Now for the combination."

Kent approached the dial and started spinning it.

"Left 26, right to the 59." Kent muttered under his breath as he twisted the dial. "Keep going right to get to 6, then finally, turn it to the left until you get to the 32."

"What are you mumbling?" Maiko asked.

"Just making sure I follow my father's instructions." Kent said, grabbing the safe's handle.. "I've never been down here before."

"And just what is supposed to be…" Maiko began to say before Kent opened the safe. "Oh, damn. What did your father do again?"

"He was military." Kent said, looking over what his father had stored away. "What he did, he never said. Told us that if anyone found out what he did, he failed his mission."

"But still." Maiko said, his mouth open in awe. "How could he have managed to hide all THIS?"

Inside the safe was a FAMAS assault rifle, two boxes of ammunition labeled "5.56×45mm NATO", a couple machetes, a rack of four combat knives, and on the back wall, a Mossberg 500 shotgun, along with a breaching attachment. Beneath it were four boxes full of shells.

"I don't know." Kent said with a shrug. "He might just have been a weapon nut. It would fit him, because of his slight obsession with wanting me in the military."

"I can see that." lily said, after being quiet for the entire trip so far. "He's got enough weapons to arm people well for a war."

"Yeah. And keep them fed," Kent said, gesturing to a small shelf stocked with cases.

"What are those?" Maiko asked, looking at the cases.

"If I'm right, and I think I am." Kent said. "They're MREs. It will very good to have those with us."

"MRE?" Lily asked.

"Meal, Ready to Eat." Kent said. "Military food, in other words. All you do is put the water in the heating bag, then add in the main dish. If you have more water, there's normally a drink that you can make."

"Interesting." Lily said. "Sounds rather useful for us."

"Yep." Kent said with a nod. "They also have a shelf life of around 3 and a half years under the conditions they were kept in, so they should still be good."

"I agree." Maiko said. "Let's take a few with us. But I have a question, Kent."

"Shoot." Kent said, still looking over everything.

"Can I have the shotgun?" Maiko said. "I've always liked shotguns, and I need something heavier than just my Glock and swords."

"Go ahead and take it, man." Kent said, pulling out the shotgun and the boxes of shells and handing them to Maiko before reaching for the FAMAS. "I've always been more partial to the assault rifles, though. And did he…YES, he did!"

"He did what?" Lily asked, after packing ten MREs into a duffel that was on the ground.

"Look at this." Kent said, holding up what looked like a small metal cylinder. "Do either of you know what this is?"

Lily shook her head, while Maiko nodded.

"It's a suppressor." Kent said." It'll come in handy during this nightmare."

"How so?" Lily asked

"It quiets how loud the gunshots are." Maiko said. "It'll allow us to fire a gun without drawing a horde. But that's an assault rifle-style suppressor. Are there any for pistols?"

"No." Kent said, shaking his head. "There's only the one, and it's an assault rifle."

"Well, no matter." Maiko said. "I still have my swords for silent weapons."

Kent nodded as he undid the belt around his waist and picked up one of the machetes. It had a black blade, and while it was serrated on one side, it wasn't on the chopping side, and that was what Kent was going to use it for. He slid it onto his belt, so that it was on his left hip. After he put it on, he picked up a box of ammunition and saw three 30-round mags for it, along with a longer one. He set the box of ammunition down and pulled the magazines out of the safe before beginning to load them. He had just finished loading the 60-round one when he saw another 30-round magazine in the gun.

"Son of a…" Kent said to himself under his breathe as he pulled the magazine out and began to it. "Forgot that there is a magazine in the gun at all times."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Group Grows

June 19, 2012, 3:25pm

Kent was walking back outside, holding the FAMAS his father had left him with clear indication that he had had training in handling it. Maiko, Lilly and Jethro were close behind him.

The moment he had gotten out the door, he heard the chomping of a zombie on a corpse. Without thinking he started making his way towards the sound. Part of him was curious as to what was happening, but another was worried about his skills with the assault rifle being rusty since he hadn't held a gun in two years.

The moment he turned the corner and saw what was happening, he froze. He also dropped the FAMAS, which clattered to the ground, attracting the attention the attention of the zombie. It looked up at Kent and started shambling towards him. Although he thought he recognized the zombie when he first saw it, now he saw it in clear detail: it was his mother. His hands quickly pulled out his fireaxe just as Maiko and Lily turned the corner with Jethro. Kent heard Jethro start snarling and heard the shotgun being pumped when he spoke, his voice tense and forceful.

"No." He said, his grip on the fireaxe tightening rapidly until his knuckles were white. "This one is MINE."

"But-"

Kent blurred into action, speeding towards the thing that had once been his loving and caring mother, roaring loudly as he went. He didn't see the swing he made with the fireaxe, but saw the head of what was formerly his mother go flying. As the body fell, Kent just stood there, breathing deeply.

He didn't register that Maiko or Lily were approaching before he fell to his knees and dropped the fireaxe before putting his head into his hands and started to weep because of what he had had to do.

Then he felt a hand on both of his shoulders before hearing Lily's voice.

"Come on, Kent." She said gently. "Let's get out of here, before more zombies come."

Kent slowly stood up, and when he opened his eyes, he saw Maiko standing there, holding his FAMAS out to him.

"Here, man." Maiko said as Kent took his FAMAS back. "I suggest we get somewhere safe quickly."

"Why is-"

The sounds of the undead cut Kent's question off. He slung his fireaxe and looked around before eying a small house on the side of the street. He retained a death grip on his FAMAS as he made his way towards the house. Lily stood next to him while Maiko took point, with Jethro right behind him and Lily. As the moans of the undead started to get close, Lily was quietly shutting the door to the house. Maiko was in the kitchen scouring it for supplies, while Kent threw himself into a chair in the living room, his mind still reeling over what had happened.

Jethro rested his head in Kent's lap, looking into his eyes. For the second time in five minutes, Kent's FAMAS fell to the ground. Without thinking, Kent drew the machete from its sheath and started looking over it. Jethro saw this and started whining, but Kent didn't notice.

Lily heard Jethro whine and looked over, only to see that Kent was holding the machete. She then saw the look in his eyes and read the sign. She quickly ran and grabbed his arm.

"Don't." She said.

"And why shouldn't I?" Kent said, his voice completely void of emotion. "I just lost the closest family member to me, really the ONLY family member I had."

"You still have Jethro." Lily said. "You also have Maiko and I."

Those statements were what did it for Kent. The knowledge that he had others to rely on and that relied on him snapped him out of it. The look of suicide left his eyes almost instantly as he sheathed the machete.

"You're right." He said, his voice returning to normal. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have thought that way."

"You have nothing to be sorry for." Lily said. "I had to do the same thing before I was on the run."

Kent looked up into her eyes and noticed that her eyes were a calming shade of blue. He felt his sorrow and fears melt away as he looked into them. Then he noticed that he was staring and looked away, embarrassed.

"Thank you, Lily." He said before standing up and walking into the kitchen.

When he entered the kitchen, Maiko was standing there, smirking at him.

"What?" Kent asked.

"Oh, nothing." Maiko said before returning to searching through the kitchen. After a bit, he got next to Kent before dropping his voice. "I can tell that you like Lily."

"What?" Kent whispered back. "I don't know what you're talking abo-"

"Bullshit." Maiko whispered. "I saw how you looked into her eyes. I can tell that you like her. Why don't you just say it?"

"Because I can't." Kent said.

"It's easy." Maiko said. "You just walk up to her and say that you like her."

"You don't get it." Kent said. "I _can't_. I get completely tongue-tied when I start going down that road. And you didn't see her in school."

"What do you mean?" Maiko asked quietly.

"She was hounded by guys there." Kent replied. "I can't deny that she's pretty, but I can't just tell her that I like her, because then she'll think I'm just another guy that likes her for her looks."

"Ahhhh." Maiko said. "Well, you're on your own there, man."

"Thanks." Kent said, rolling his eyes.

"So, is there anything useful in here?" Lily asked, entering the kitchen.

"Not really. It's already been raided." Maiko said. "There's no-"

Just then, there was a _thud _from the upper floor, as if something had fallen to the floor.

"What was that?" Lily asked, drawing her katana.

"I don't know." Kent said, going back into the living room and grabbing his FAMAS. "But I think we need to check it out."

"You first, man." Maiko said. "I'm not going up there. There's no telling how many zombies are up there."

Kent rolled his eyes again before starting to slowly, quietly walk up the stairs. As he ascended, he caught another _thud_, this one almost inaudible. As he looked up, he saw a basic trap on the landing. He then heard a shotgun being pumped from above and felt the cold metal of a barrel against the side of his head.

"Slowly come up here." A voice quietly said. After Kent finished climbing the stairs, the voice spoke again. "Why are you here?"

"Probably the same reason why you're here: shelter." Kent replied. "Why else would someone be in here?"

"Looting." The voice replied. "How do I know that you aren't just another of the scum that have been looting these places for their own selfish ends?"

"Because I have two others downstairs, including my dog." Kent replied.

"Prove it." The voice said.

"Maiko, Lily." Kent said down the stairs. "Come up here, slowly."

"Why?" Maiko asked.

"Just trust me." Kent said. "I'm dead otherwise."

"Okay." Maiko said. "Even though I don't know what's going on."

Kent then heard two different people coming up the stairs slowly. Once they came into view, he felt the barrel lower. He turned towards who had spoke and saw a person a little taller than him.

He was wearing large sunglasses. There was a gold cross hanging around his neck. They wore what looked like a black trench-coat over a black t-shirt. The hands that held the shotgun had black fingerless gloves on them, and he was wearing black jeans and boots.

"See?" Kent asked, jerking his head towards Maiko and Lily. "We're just trying to survive. You wanna join us? We could always use another person to help survive."

The guy shrugged before giving his answer.

"Sure." He said. "You got enough room for my dog as well?"

"We sure as hell do." Kent said before whistling in the fashion he had picked up from his father. "Jethro, come here."

He heard Jethro climbing the stairs and heard a dog come out from a room behind him, causing him to turn around. He saw a Doberman Pinscher coming out of the bedroom.

"I can only guess that one is yours." Kent said. "Is it a boy or a girl, and what's its name."

"I call her Scavenger." The guy said. "She was a stray that grew on my family before this catastrophe."

"Well, since we're joining forces, what's your name?" Maiko asked.

"Matthew von Drache, but just call me Matthew." The guy said.

"Well, Matthew, I'm Kent." Kent said. "The blonde is Maiko, and Lily is the girl."

"Nice to meet you all." Matthew said. "How long have you been a group?"

"Couple days." Kent said. "I found Maiko pretty early on, and then we ran into Lily. After a bit, here we are."

"Okay. Where are you heading?" Matthew asked.

"We're just wandering, avoiding the zombies." Maiko said.

"And what about your friend, Lily?" Matthew asked. "She doesn't seem to talk much."

"She's like that around people she doesn't know well." Kent said. "She doesn't even talk to Maiko or I much yet."

"Interesting." Matthew said. "But still, we need to have a plan on where to go."

"I'd suggest one of the fire stations." Kent said. "We might be able to get more weapons, supplies, and they tend to be somewhat secure."

"I passed by one a few hours ago." Matthew said. "We should head there."

"Alright. Now we have a plan." Maiko said. "Let's do it."

Lily just nodded at this, showing that she agreed.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Splitting the Team and an Awkward night.

June 19, 2012, 5:19pm

Kent was walking out into the street, his FAMAS held at the ready, the silencer attached. He saw a few zombies immediately in front of him. His gun coughed four times, and the four zombies in front of him dropped, the silenced semi-auto shots finding their marks in the zombies' heads.

He then signaled for the three others to come out. They came out quietly, Matthew taking point.

"So, which way to this fire house?" Kent asked.

"This way." Matthew said, pointing towards a side street. "We go straight down that path, and then take a right at the next main street. Three blocks and we're there."

"Got it. Let's get going." Maiko said.

As they passed through the street quietly, Kent saw a couple alleyways almost clogged with the zombies.

"Holy shit, check out those alleys." He whispered.

"I know." Matthew said. "They've been packed for a while now. Probably there are still survivors in the houses."

Just as they passed another alley, Kent noticed Lily lag behind slightly. He went back towards her.

"Hey, what's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothing. Just a bit tired is all." She said.

"I can carry you if you want." Kent said with a small smile.

"No, I'll be fine." She said, a small smile forming at the corners of her mouth as well. "I just need a bit of time to catch my breathe, and then I'll catch up."

"Okay." Kent said, standing back up and starting to walk back towards the group. About half-way there, he passed by a chain-link fence, and the thing he had feared would happen when he, Lily and Maiko had talked about the group when they had met happened.

His fire-ax, which he had assumed was strapped in tightly, which it normally was, apparently wasn't because it bounced off one of the fence a couple times, causing it to rattle.

"Shit," He said quietly to himself.

As if on cue, the zombies started flooding out of the nearest alley, cutting the group off from Lily. She started backing up, until her katana hit the fence as well, dragging the attention of the zombies.

"Come on, Kent. We need to move." Maiko whispered.

"I can't." Kent said.

Matthew looked at Kent.

"Come on." He whispered. "There's nothing we can do. There are too many for us to handle, with more on the way."

"Then you guys go. Get to the fire house." Kent said. "I've never left one of my group behind, and I'm not going to start now. I'm not leaving her to die, or worse."

With that, he turned around.

"Come, Jethro." He said, bringing his FAMAS to the ready position and started walking back the way he came.

He heard zombies shambling into the street from alleys behind him and knew that there was no going back towards the group. But he didn't care. His will became as iron as he walked, bringing the FAMAS to bear and unleashing burst after burst from the FAMAS, dropping zombie after zombie. He then heard a blade get stuck into something and then Lily started crying.

"Just hang on, Lily." Kent said quietly. "I'm coming for you."

The last three-round burst left the rifle before the characteristic _PING_of the magazine running empty. He quickly let go of the gun, bringing out his fire-axe, and made a wide swing, managing to decapitate two zombies before getting lodged in the third one's skull, becoming stuck.

"Shit." Kent said, but let go of the axe and pulled out the machete, starting to cut and hack his way through the zombies, slowly but surely making his way towards Lily.

Just as one zombie had grabbed her, the machete fell one last time, decapitating the zombie. Kent stood over her, breathing deeply. Blood was spattered all over his clothes, and Lily had gotten some blood spattered on her, most likely from when she was swinging her katanas. He looked down and saw one zombie with a katana stuck in it's torso. He set it on the ground in front of her and walked back towards his fire-axe. He retrieved it and slung it, making sure it was properly secured before walking back towards Lily. She was on the ground, shaking. He held out a hand to her.

"Come on." He said quietly. "Let's go. We need to find somewhere safe."

She grabbed his hand, and as he pulled her up, she immediately hugged him. Her voice was shaky as she spoke quietly.

"Thank you." She said. "Thank you for coming back for me."

Kent felt himself start to blush at the girl he liked being this close to him. He gently put a hand on her head as he replied.

"I've never left someone close to me behind." He said. "And I'm sure as hell not going to break that pattern now."

"Well, anyway, thank you." Lily said.

"It's no problem. But let's get going." Kent said, starting to walk back the way the group had come before this had happened. "Let's find another way around."

"Okay." Lily said quietly.

As they walked out into the street, Jethro right behind them, Kent saw that the main street to their right was flooded with zombies.

"Shit." He said quietly. "Looks like we're going deeper towards downtown for the moment."

3 hours later

Kent walked up the driveway of a large house, Lily on his left and Jethro on his right. It was a wonder that they had made it this far since their separation from the others. He held the FAMAS in a vice-like grip, holding it tightly to his chest, ready to swing it and fire at a moment's notice. Lily was almost clinging to his arm, clearly still terrified from her previous ordeal. Jethro's ears were moving to and fro, listening for something.

As they walked, he turned to Lily.

"You okay?" He asked gently.

"I'll be fine." Lily said. "Let's just worry about getting to shelter."

"Right." Kent said with a nod. "We don't wanna get caught out in the open."

Just then, it started to rain, something that was rather new. As the rain began to pick up, they were near the door. Kent tried the door, which was unlocked surprisingly. As it swung open, He had his FAMAS aimed and ready to fire. Jethro walked in first, followed closely by Lily and Kent.

"You think anyone, or anything, is here?" Lily asked.

"One way to find out." Kent said as he shut the door. "Let's just hope that there's only a couple of the undead in here."

"What do you mean by that?" Lily asked.

"Just watch." Kent said as he approached a stairwell.. The railing was metal, so Kent pulled out the spent magazine he had in his hoodie and sharply rapped it on the railing. The metal sound resonated throughout the house. Kent listened for a few seconds, his ears keyed into the sounds of moans, but he heard nothing.

"We're alone." He said. "But come on. Let's see what this place has for food."

Lily nodded.

As they walked towards the kitchen, Kent couldn't help but feel a strong urge towards Lily, something he hadn't felt around any other female he had been around.

When they entered it, Kent immediately went toward the refrigerator, hoping to find some meat for Jethro. Within the fridge, he found a couple pork chops. Knowing Trent loved his meat raw, he pulled them out of their package, put them onto a plate and set it down on the floor.

"Here you are, boy." Kent said. "Fresh meat."

Jethro barked once before tearing into the meat. Kent watched this before turning back towards the fridge. He didn't find much else in the way of food, just a couple bananas, as well as a couple bottles of soda.

"They don't make sodas like this much anymore." He said as he pulled out the bottles and showed them to her. "Old-school Coca Cola."

"Interesting." Lily said, her gaze wandering around the kitchen. "Who do you suppose lived here?"

"Obviously someone rich." Kent said. "Did you catch the length of that driveway?"

"Hard not to." Lily said. "But still."

"I know." Kent said. "But let's get something to eat before we speak about anything else. I'll look through my pack, see what's left."

Kent took his FAMAS off and set it against the wall before he slipped his backpack off. He started rifling through the contents, pulling out the extra magazines he carried as well as the silencer for the FAMAS. He also pulled out a small revolver, a gun he had gotten from searching a dead man's possessions. It was in working order, but he didn't want to have to use it. It didn't have a silencer like his FAMAS did. Firing that gun would really set off a flare concerning their position.

Once all the stuff had been cleared out, he pulled out a couple sandwiches he had made the previous day. He handed one to Lily.

"Here." He said. "I hope peanut butter and jelly is fine. It's all I got."

"That's alright." Lily said, taking the sandwich. "I'm just glad to be out of the streets."

"You and me both." Kent said as he popped the soda bottles open by pulling a bottle opener out of a drawer and using it on the bottles. He handed one of them to Lily. "But I just hope we're not stuck here for long. I think some heavy rain is on the way, and while it's still rather hot, I don't wanna be risking catching Pneumonia."

"Agreed." Lily said while she was eating.

"Well, once we're done eating, I suggest we try and get some sleep." Kent said, loading what he had taken out of his backpack back into it, the exception being the pistol.. "It's getting late, and I don't think either of us will survive long if those walking meat bags attack us when we leave."

"I agree." Lily said. "But before we do that, I need to find something to change into. Blood-soaked clothes are rather gross."

"Fair enough. I'll do the same." Kent said, putting the backpack on and grabbing his FAMAS. He put the pistol into one of his jean pockets. "We should be in adjacent rooms, though. Let's figure out which rooms we'll be in."

Lily nodded as she followed him upstairs. They quickly found two vacant rooms that had large beds, easily big enough to fit two people. As they settled in, Lily looked down shyly.

"Could you possibly go into your room for the night?" She asked. "I'm gonna change before I go to bed."

Kent's eyes widened slightly at her question. His mind filled with thoughts he had had before, but he just shook his head before replying.

"Sure." He said. "I'll be in the next room if you need me. I'll see you in the morning, I guess."

Lily nodded as he left. He went into his room, Jethro closely following him. He quickly took off his clothes, down to his boxers, before he got into the bed. He put the pistol underneath the pillow next to him and laid his head down. He heard Jethro lay down beside the bed, and closed his eyes, almost instantly falling asleep.

His dream that time was rather pleasant.

_He was walking down the street with Jethro and Lily. The sun was shining, and the street was clean, not the nightmarish hellhole he had come to know the past few days. It was as if the world had cleaned itself, and all was back to normal. His arm was around Lily's waist, and she was embracing him lovingly. Jethro walked along the street merrily, barking at the occasional bird, but returning whenever Kent called._

"Nice day, isn't it?" Kent asked.

"Yes, it is." Lily said with a nod.

"I think we should find a place to just settle down, you know?" Kent asked.

"Yes. I agree." Lily said. "I think we earned a rest, don't you?"

Kent just nodded. He then saw Lily drawing close to him for a kiss…

He was brought back into reality by Jethro growling and slightly snarling at something. Within seconds, he was sitting upright, and had the revolver held out, aimed at a figure in the darkness. After a bit, he saw that the figure wasn't moving anywhere, so he reached to the bedside table and turned the lamp on. When he saw that the figure was only Lily, he lowered the pistol.

"Dear god, Lily." He said. "You nearly got yourself killed."

"I know." Lily said quietly. Her arms were crossed over a white night gown, and he could see that there were a few tears rolling down her face. "But you said to come in here if I needed anything."

"I did, I did." Kent said. "So what's wrong?"

"Is it alright if I sleep in here tonight?" Lily asked, looking into Kent's eyes.

Kent's mouth dropped at her question. Lily looked down at the floor when she saw this.

"I'll leave if it's not alright with you." Lily said, beginning to turn away.

"No, don't." Kent said gently. "It's okay. I was just surprised by your question is all."

"So you don't mind?" Lily asked.

"Nope." Kent said, shifting himself to one side of the bed. "I don't mind at all."

Lily made her way to the side opposite of him, laying down facing him. She slid towards him and rested her hands against his chest. As he had thought, her hands were soft, but had a slight rough texture to them. He saw a flash and heard a thundering _BOOM_, and saw as Lily shook a bit. He wrapped his arms around her protectively.

Another flash went off, followed by the characteristic _BOOM_, and while Kent saw Lily shake a bit, but not as much as the previous time. He slightly tightened his hold on her.

"It's alright." Kent said. "I'm here. And I'm not going anywhere."

"Thank you." Lily said, a few tears still running down her face. She buried her head in Kent's chest, all but crying.

Kent caught the smell of her hair. Like her name, he caught a scent of lilies as well as a small undertone of fruit. He then lowered his head, his chin resting on the top of her head. He then reached a hand behind to turn off the light.

"Good night, Lily." Kent said quietly.

"Good night, Kent." Lily replied, her voice slightly muffled from her face being buried in his chest.

With that, Kent closed his eyes and fell asleep.

June 10, 2012, 6:36am

Kent was awoken by two things. First, he felt the sun beating down on his face, through the rain-streaked window. Second, he felt something rather unusual touching his groin area. When he opened his eyes, his gaze was filled with Lily's hair; She had turned around during her sleep. His arms were still wrapped around her in a protective embrace.

He quietly slid his arms out from around her, and slid back. When he looked down, he saw that her night gown had ridden up during their sleep. Her ivory-colored skin was very pale, and Kent saw that she wasn't wearing any undergarments. Curious, he lowered one of his hands and lightly grabbed one of her buttocks. The skin was almost as smooth as silk, but had that slightly rough texture to it, just like her hands. He saw her fidget a bit, moving on the bed, and quickly removed his hand from its location. He then felt his boxers become tight, causing him to look down. He had sprung an erection from the contact, and he felt his face grow warm. In an attempt at being polite as well as decent, he tried to lower her night gown to cover her backside. As he tried, however, she turned over, and sleepily opened her eyes.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Yo…your..uh…ni-night." Kent started stammering.

"Just say it." Lily said.

"Your, uh, night gown rode up last night." Kent said, his voice shaking slightly. "I was trying to pull it down."

"Was that so hard to say?" Lily asked.

"Actually, yes." Kent said, beginning to blush. "I've never had much experience with girls."

"Well, thank you for the consideration." Lily said with a smile as she scooted over and hugged him before giving him a light kiss on the cheek. "That's the first time a guy has shown any consideration."

Kent felt his face blush even more after she kissed him on the cheek.

"N-n-no problem, Lily." He managed to say. "But maybe we should look into getting our clothes changed and everything?"

"You're right." Lily said. with a nod. She then left for her room.

**Note to readers: Yes, Kent and lily are gonna end up being together. I'm not having them be together quite yet, though. There is gonna be a bit of a twist before that happens. This coupling was authorized by TheDarkBladeHuntress, the creator of Lily.**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 - Reunions and an Altered Reality

Jun 20, 2012, 9:01am

Kent was waiting by the door of the house, waiting for Lily. Jethro was sitting right next to him. Kent's mind drifted to earlier. He smiled when he remembered her kissing him on the cheek.

"If only she knew." He said to himself.

"If only who knew what?" Lily asked, catching him off-guard.

"Nobody." Kent said. "Just thinking out loud."

"Okay." Lily said. Although she wasn't completely convinced, she decided not to push the matter.

"Anyway, you ready to go?" Kent asked.

"Yep." Lily said, tapping her katana.

"Good." Kent said. "Let's go."

The trio then started making their way towards the street. While they were walking, a swift form caught Kent's eye, and he honed in on where it had been, despite the fact that the area he was looking at was empty. This didn't go unnoticed by Lily.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Nothing. Just a trick on my eyes." Kent said after he shook his head.

"Okay." Lily said, again, not completely convinced. "Any idea as to where the others went?"

"No idea." Kent replied. "But I think we should go back the way wee came and make our way from there."

"Fair enough." Lily said. "And thank you."

"What for?" Kent asked.

"Letting me spend the night with you." Lily said, blushing slightly.

"Don't mention it." Kent said. "I understand why you were scared. When I was younger, thunder scared the crap out of me."

As they were walking, Jethro immediately tensed up, and started growling.

"What is it, boy?" Kent asked.

As if in response, there was a high-pitched, crazy laugh.

"What have we here?" The voice said before a man with an obviously crazy look to his eyes landed in front of them, wielding what looked like a kitchen knife. "A couple and their dog, trying to survive."

Within an instant of them landing, Kent had his FAMAS pointing at them.

"That's close enough, buddy." Kent said.

The person just laughed as he approached a bit.

"Oh, come on." The guy said. "We both know you're not gonna shoot me."

Without flinching, Kent fired a burst at his feet. He then raised it, aiming at the guy's chest.

"You wanna bet I won't shoot your sorry ass?" Kent asked. "Now back off."

Just then he saw the same form behind him, only this time it was clearer than the last time. His gun lowered slightly. His stare became a blank one, all of his focus being on the form.

That hesitation was all the crazy guy needed. He started running at Kent and Lily, cackling as he did.

"Kent?" Lily asked as she saw him running.

The moment she called his name, two things happened at the same time: First, Jethro leaped at the man, catching him off-guard as the canine's maw tore open his neck. Second, Kent snapped back into reality and raised the FAMAS, sending a burst into the guy's midsection, luckily missing Jethro. The guy died shortly after this happened.

Lily looked at Kent.

"What happened to you?" She asked.

"I don't know." Kent said, shaking somewhat. "But you didn't see the figure behind the guy?"

"What figure?" Lily asked. "There was nobody there."

"I thought I saw someone familiar." Kent said, slinging his FAMAS. "But it was just my mind playing tricks on me."

"Okay." Lily said, still not thoroughly convinced. "Let's just get moving again."

"Yes, let's." Kent said, starting to move out.

~

Thirty minutes later

~

Kent, Lily and Jethro were walking through a street, managing to dodge some of the undead. Then he heard a familiar voice past an un-jumpable fence.

"Maybe they went this way." Maiko's voice said.

"I doubt it." Mathew's voice replied. "Have you seen how many zombies are down that path?"

"Guys?' Kent asked.

"Kent!" Maiko said, surprised. "You guys alright?"

"Yeah, we're fine. And what about you two?" Kent replied.

"We're fine as well." Maiko said. "And let me tell you, you never wanna get on Matthew's bad side."

"Okay. Tell me the full story later. We need to find a place to meet up." Kent said.

"My thoughts exactly. Matthew, you know of any cross streets nearby?" Maiko said.

"Well, there is a cross street a couple blocks from here, and it SHOULD be rather clear." Matthew said. "But there's also a nearby back street, but when we passed it, it was FLOODED with zombies. Take your pick."

"I know. We saw it too." Kent said. "Let's take the safe approach. We'll meet you at the cross street."

"Okay." Maiko said. "And Lily?"

"Yes?" Lily asked, breaking her silence.

"Good to hear you're still with us. Kent risked his life to save you." Maiko said.

"I know, and he has my eternal thanks for saving me." Lily said, blushing slightly as she remembered what had happened the previous night.

"Let's get going and finish this reunion later." Matthew said.

"Agreed. See you two on the other side." Kent said before turning to Lily. "You ready?"

"Yes, I am." She said.

The trio then started moving towards the planned crossroad. As they did, Jethro was slightly tense.

"What's wrong, boy?" Kent asked quietly.

Jethro just looked at him and whimpered slightly.

"What's wrong with Jethro?" Lily asked.

"Hell if I know." Kent replied. "I haven't seen him like this before."

As they approached the cross street, however, Kent saw the same form for a third time, this time in perfect focus; It was his mother. She then started walking away.

"Where are you going? Come back." Kent murmured, barely audible to himself. He also found himself following the form as it was walking away.

"Kent? Where are you going?" Lily asked.

Kent didn't hear Lily speak however, as his full attention was on the vision he had of his mother. He kept moving towards her, oblivious to his surroundings. Such was his obliviousness that he didn't se where he was going.

Lily gasped as she saw where he was headed: straight into a large group of zombies.

"KENT!" She all but yelled. "WATCH OUT!"

The moment she yelled, his mind snapped back to reality, and he was met with the sight of the large group of zombies converging not only towards him, but Lily and Jethro.

"OH, SHIT!" He said loudly, catching their full attention, and they were barely ten feet from him.

His FAMAS sprang to life in his hands, sighting quickly on the nearest zombie and sending a round into its head. It rapidly switched from zombie to zombie, dropping them one after the other. After the tenth zombie fell, the _PING_ of the magazine running empty sounded, but there were still around fifteen zombies remaining.

Before he could pull his fire-axe out, however, there was a pair of loud blasts, sending them scattering as well as killing a few of them. He spun around and saw both Maiko and Matthew standing there, pointing their shotguns.

"Come on." Matthew said, gesturing towards the street he and Maiko had come down. "Let's get to the firehouse."

"Okay." Kent said, shaking. He then followed the others, starting to try and make sense of what had happened. He also saw Jethro and Lily walking next to him nearby.

~

At the firehouse, twenty minutes later

~

Kent was sitting on one of the beds trying to make sense of what had just happened to him. Jethro was laying on the bed, resting his head in Kent's lap.

"What the hell is happening to me?" He asked nobody in particular. He then put his hands on the sides of his head. "Something's not right."

"Kent? What's wrong?" Lily asked, walking towards the bed and sitting next to him.

"Noth-"

"Bullshit. I know when something is wrong." Lily said. "Ever since we got here, you've been sitting up here alone. Now tell me, what's wrong?"

"Where do I start?" Kent asked.

"Wherever you want to, I guess." Lily said.

Kent inhaled deeply and exhaled.

"Okay." He said. "You remember how I had to kill my mother?"

"How could I forget?" Lily replied. "You nearly killed yourself."

"Okay. Well, three times today, I caught a form." Kent said. Once as we were leaving that house, again when we were attacked by that crazy SOB, then again before I nearly walked into that zombie horde."

"Okay." Lily said.

"The first two times, the form wasn't clear." Kent said. "But this time, it came in perfect focus. It was a vision of my mother."

"But that can't be." Lily said.

"I know." Kent said. "It's like I'm losing touch with reality."

"I understand." Lily said.

Kent then did something that shocked Lily: he rested his head on her shoulder as he started crying. The sounds caught the attention of Maiko, who walked in to see the scene laid out before him. Lily just looked at him, her look saying "Leave it be.", to which he nodded and left. She then rested a hand on his head, trying to calm him down.

After a bit, Kent's crying died out, and he raised his head.

"Thank you." He said, looking into her eyes.

"For what?" She asked.

"Listening and just being here." Kent replied.

"You're welcome." Lily said, standing up slowly. "You think you'll be alright, though?"

"For now, I think." Kent said. "Just give me some time to myself."

"Take all the time you need." Lily said, leaving.

With that, Kent laid down and Jethro shifted to lay along his belly. Kent then closed his eyes and fell asleep.

~

two hours later

~

Kent woke to see Lily gently shaking him.

"What's wrong?" He asked her.

"Maiko and that new guy, Matthew, want to talk to you." Lily said. "It sounded important."

"Okay." Kent said, getting up. "Let's go."


End file.
